


Kakashi's dilemma

by Chocobofever



Series: Vampire Nation [1]
Category: Naruto
Genre: Gen, Hunter-trainee!Iruka, M/M, vampire!Kakashi
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-27
Updated: 2019-02-27
Packaged: 2019-11-06 12:28:39
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,740
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17939720
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chocobofever/pseuds/Chocobofever
Summary: Kakashi was a cursed being. Many vampires resented their bloodthirsty nature, especially the ones who believed in the tales of a vicious witch who stole the right to daylight from the first of their kind. Kakashi himself had never cared much, apart from when having to deal with the daily inconveniences of his undead body. Blood thirst could be fun, but troublesome, and the fact that he couldn’t walk out in daylight was most certainly a bummer.The curse that bothered him was one he had acquired later in life.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is part of the Vampire Nation universe, first introduced as a snippet in "101 colors of Kakairu". To make reading easier, I copied the storyline as "chapter one" and will add new material as "chapter two". New snippets will be added under the series.

  **VAMPIRE NATION PART ONE (found in "101 colors of Kakairu")**

* * *

 

“It can’t be…”

“That’s… That’s the S-class, isn’t it?”

It wasn’t that Iruka was particularly skilled. His parents had died when he was young, leaving him to grow up at the church with a bunch of other orphans who were either much younger than him or better behaved. As a result, Iruka grew up to be a very tedious teenager, always coming up with tricks and gimmicks that would land him in the limelight for that one precocious second.

If he were to be entirely honest, Iruka probably wouldn’t have been able to do it if not for Mizuki’s recent betrayal. He just needed  _something_ to rub in the pale-haired bastard’s face and that goal had been important enough for him to forget the fear of death for one precious second.

That one second had been all he needed.

\--

“Preposterous! You can’t seriously be thinking of letting the child keep him? He is one of Konoha’s greatest assets…“

“And also unusable by any of our higher ranked operatives,” reminded Hiruzen. The councilman in front of him gaped, stunted by his harsh, but truthful words.  “Is it not time to let someone else try? Iruka-kun may be young, but he  _did_ perform the capture…“

“By sheer dumb luck!”

“Be that as it might be,” conceded Hiruzen. “He is currently our best choice. Give him time, see if he can get 009720 under control.”

“009720 cannot be controlled! We have seen it time and time again. Even our best operatives are at a loss at what to with him.”

“Yet someone  _did_ control him, did they not?” Hiruzen raised a brow pointedly and the councilman scowled in return.

“If you are referring to the Fourth, he died over a decade ago. I think it is safe to say we should forget about him. Pertaining to this, at least,” said the councilman, in a more amiable tone.

Hiruzen took another breath out of his pipe, taking in the sight of Konoha’s rooftops opening up before him. “That is why I say we should let Iruka-kun try. He lives on Academy grounds so we can easily keep an eye on him, plus he will have his instructors close to teach him how to take on this new responsibility. I agree that Iruka-kun cannot control him now, but maybe he can grow to become a master that even  _he_ will acknowledge.”

The councilman looked doubtful, but he reluctantly tilted his head. “You _are_  aware that Umino-san’s grades are the worst in his class?” 

Hiruzen stilled. “Not the absolute worst, surely.”

“The  _absolute_ worst.”

Hiruzen sighed, rubbing the between his eyes.  “I will talk to him. For now, my order stands. We’ll see if we can make something of this and if not…”

The councilman straightened out his arms next to his body before bowing lowly. He was not someone Hiruzen considered a close friend, not someone he was on particularly good terms with even, but he was respectful of the ladder of command and would carry out whatever decision Hiruzen or the Council came to.

\--

To tell the truth, Iruka hadn’t really been thinking about the ‘after’ part of his revenge. So, he had been able to secure a familiar and a better one than Mizuki’s at that, well done. Only problem was, he had no idea what do now.

"Here you go. No matter what you do, don’t ever try to unchain him without a teacher there to help you keep him in line.”

The end of a long, thin chain was placed in Iruka’s palm. He squeezed it automatically, but throwing a look at the nearly six foot  vampire next to him he couldn’t for the life of him understand how he was supposed to restrain the guy if he wanted to go.

Maybe if he looked around someone else would know what they were meant to do. Iruka twisted his head this way and that, trying to pinpoint the geeks in his class. Doing so, his eyes happened to cross his familiar's one-eyed stare. Iruka felt as if a load of ice cubes had been slipped down the collar of his shirt.

“Iruka-kun, are you alright?”

“I’m fine,” muttered Iruka, turning his eyes to their instructor who was slowly making his way to the front.

Their instructor began his speech by congratulating the trainees who had been successful in today’s quest. Iruka did his best to listen in as they did indeed get instructions on how to proceed from here, but it sounded like the usual mumbo jumbo and Iruka found his mind drifting quickly.

Iruka had a familiar now. Would that mean that his days as the dead last of the class were finally over?

\--

 “As expected from Iruka-kun.”

“For a moment there I feared the laws of nature might have been turned on their head, but it was just the exception that proves the rule; Iruka really  _does_  suck that bad. I didn’t think it was possible, but he really does.”

“Guys,” whined Iruka though if he were to be honest, the underlined and circled four points on his test paper kind of impressed even him. 

“That’s going to mean supplementary lessons,” said Izumo, in a kinder tone of voice. Iruka beamed at him. “And no, I’m not going to tutor you.”

Iruka pouted. “You suck.”

“No, you do,” said Izumo, looking over his own test paper; He’d gotten a whooping 88 points, which apparently counted as ' _pretty average'.  
_

“How many supplementary classes are you in now?” asked Kotetsu. Iruka lifted four fingers. “Sweet. Meet you in English.”

“I passed English,” said Iruka sullenly. Kotetsu gaped, almost falling over on his chair. .

“What? Seriously?”

“It’s one of his better classes,” said Izumo.

“But still,” said Kotetsu, looking bewildered. “I’m worse than Umino at something? It can’t be!”

“I’m not that bad,” said Iruka, staring daggers at his spiky haired somewhat-friend.

“Hey.” Kotetsu called out, looking around the class. A few guys looked up, while most of them continued with whatever they were doing.  “Who’s having supplementary classes in English?” A few exchanged looks, but nobody raised a hand.

“Umino?” guessed one.

“I’m not that bad!” declared Iruka.

“Shit,” said Kotetsu, turning to face them again.. Iruka grinned evilly at him.

“So, how does it feel to be a failure?” Iruka asked in the most sugary voice he could muster. Kotetsu scowled at him, but Izumo’s arm coming in between them stopped them from taking it a step further.

“How are things going with 009720?” asked Izumo, smoothly changing the subject. .

“With what?” asked Iruka. This time Izumo looked up, looking dumbfounded.

“Are you serious?”

“Wait, that is the code for a vampire, isn’t it?” asked Iruka. “ _My_  vampire? Er, the one I trapped I mean.”

Izumo’s brows furrowed, the way they always did when the brunette was certain Iruka was about to fail yet another test of theirs.

“I’m not good with numbers,” mumbled Iruka, lowering his head to rest it against the top of his desk sullenly. “And I was going to call him by another name anyway.”

He’d been thinking of names all day long actually, unable to focus in class because of it. Iruka had several strong sounding ones in mind, but he could never quite decide on a particular one.  _Raging Thunder_ sounded cool, but was impractical to yell out in the fray of battle.  _Immortal Nightmare_ was a favorite from his younger days, but Iruka wasn’t quite satisfied with that one either. He’d thought about using something in a foreign language,ne of the older students had an A-rankcalled Adelaide, but Iruka was afraid he might botch up the pronunciation and wouldn't _that_  be embarrassing.

By the end of the day, Iruka still hadn’t been able to settle on any single one and so he trudged down to the dungeons for his first one-on-one session with a list in his hand. For teaching purposes, 00-whatever-0 had been taken to a separate room where he remained securely chained to the wall.

“This, Iruka-kun, is the classical way of restraining vampires; Hands tied from elbow down behind the back, neck attached to the wall on a chain of varying length... That it usually up to the master, according to how well they believe their vampire will stay put. Usually it is better to caution on the side of safety.” Iruka's teacher sent Iruka's vampire a pointed look. Iruka noted that with how he had been restrained, the vampire wouldn't be able to move much, several inches away from the wall at most. “Have you decided on what you’re going to call him?”

Iruka jumped, fumbling with the paper in his hands. “I-I have a few ideas. I just couldn’t quite decide…” Iruka looked down. The reassuring voice of his instructor had him raising his head again.

“That is quite a common problem. Why don’t you voice a few options and see what he thinks of them?”

He? Iruka looked to the vampire, swallowing thickly. The vampire still wasn't acknowledging their presence in the room, staring at the ceiling as if it were the most interesting thing around. Clearing his throat, Iruka tightened his grip on the sheet in his hands. “Raging Thunder,” he read out loud. A beat passed, then the vampire's head turned. Iruka had a hard time deciding if he liked it or not, what-with his face being covered so much. Iruka's instructor coughed into his palm.

“Erm, what are the other options?”

Iruka looked down at his list. “Immortal Nightmare. Fangs. Eternal Night. Archdevil. Fire Emblem..." He read out each name in turn, glancing up at his vampire's face after each one, waiting for a signal. What signal, he did not know, but some signal. Surely someone would tell him when to stop. "Secret Soldier—“

“No.” Iruka and his instructor both turned to stare at the vampire. “They’re all shit.”

“W-What?" Iruka felt his face heating. "Is that any way to speak to your master? And I didn’t even say them all yet!”

“I can already tell.”

“Iruka-kun, maybe you should find one that the both of you can agree on,” the instructor said quickly. It felt like failure to give in, but Iruka had to concede sensei had a point. Reluctantly he turned his gaze down to his list, but before he could locate where he’d left off, the vampire spoke.

“Scarecrow.”

“Ha!” said Iruka, pointing at him gleefully. “That one is just as bad as mine!” The vampire looked deeply unimpressed.

“Scarecrow,” the vampire said again.

“No way,” said Iruka.. “I think I’ll call you Fate’s Call _._ That’s pretty cool, isn’t it?”   

“Scarecrow,” the vampire insisted. “I refuse to answer to any other name.”

Sensei tried to put a hand on Iruka’s shoulder, but Iruka barely noticed it. To think the vampire he’d caught would be so stubborn. It was just Iruka’s luck—and only days after he’d been snubbed by the guy he’d thought to be his best friend!

“Iruka-kun,” began Sensei. “Maybe—“

“I’ll call you Toothless if you don’t start behaving,” threatened Iruka.

“Great. We’re making progress,” said the vampire flatly, his voice as dry as the deserts of northern Wind Country. Iruka gaped, astounded by the audacity of him.

 “Iruka-kun,” said Sensei, his tone reproachful, before Iruka could bark something in response.

“But he’s an ass!”

Sensei sent the vampire a quick look. “Even then, you must keep your cool. Remember that though they are our familiars, vampires can never quite be tamed—you need to think of him as more of a reluctant ally than a… Pet.”

Iruka huffed, folding his arms over his chest. Sensei looked exasperated, seeming like he didn’t quite know what to do with Iruka; A look Iruka was very familiar with on his teachers' faces.

“009720…” began teacher.

“Kakashi," said the vampire. It took Iruka a moment to realize it was another suggestion for a name.

“That means scarecrow, doesn’t it?” said Iruka, frowning. He felt the word around on his tongue.“It won’t be any cooler just because you say it in a different way.”

“It’s not meant to sound cool," the vampire spoke through clenched teeth.  “It’s my name.”

“It won’t be your name if I don’t…” Iruka began, temper on the verge of exploding, only to pause when he felt the heavy weight of Sensei's hand on his shoulder. “It’s your real name?”

“True name,” corrected Sensei. His voice sounded odd, but Iruka didn’t focus on it for too long.

A vampire’s true name. Iruka spent a lot of time dozing off in class, but even he knew names were powerful, which was why most vampires chose not to disclose theirs.

“Well,” said Iruka, taken aback. He wasn't happy to admit defeat, but neither was he enough of an asshole to force a person to change their  _name._ "Okay, Kakashi it is,  _but,"_ Iruka paused to scowl at him, hands perched on either of his hips to seem imposing. "If I get reason to doubt your word I'm registering you as Raging Thunder, okay?"

\--

“Pardon?” said Hiruzen.

“The Umino brat weaseled 009720’s name out of him.” Hiruzen held his breath. “Just a first name though.  _Kakashi.”_

“Is it authentic?”

“We think it is. We’re trying to look through the Fourth’s records again to see if there are any mentions of it.”

Hiruzen leaned his chin into his hand. Kakashi. Finally 009720 had a name. They’d always suspected that Minato knew, but after his master’s death, the vampire had refused to tell any of them.

Hiruzen’s lips tugged. Things were about to get interesting.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi was a cursed being. Many vampires resented their bloodthirsty nature, especially the ones who believed in the tales of a vicious witch who stole the right to daylight from the first of their kind. Kakashi himself had never cared much, apart from when having to deal with the daily inconveniences of his undead body. Blood thirst could be fun, but troublesome, and the fact that he couldn’t walk out in daylight was most certainly a bummer.
> 
> The curse that bothered him was one he had acquired later in life.

**PART TWO: Kakashi's dilemma**

Time frame: Some time (years?) after the happenings of part one.

* * *

 

Kakashi was a cursed being. Many vampires resented their bloodthirsty nature, especially the ones who believed in the tales of a vicious witch who stole the right to daylight from the first of their kind. Kakashi himself had never cared much, apart from when having to deal with the daily inconveniences of his undead body. Blood thirst could be fun, but troublesome, and the fact that he couldn’t walk out in daylight was most certainly a bummer.

The curse that bothered him was one he had acquired later in life.

“Do you think Shizune will like it?” Iruka asked, cheeks slightly reddened as he held out a handmade card. It was conservatively green in color, but it had large hearts painted upon it and the title ‘Happy Valentine’s Day! inscribed at the top.

“I’m sure she’ll love it,” Kakashi lied, feigning disinterest as he turned yet another page in his book. Hidden form Iruka’s view, his fingers tightened minutely against the hardness of Icha Icha’ covers. Noting that the cardboard had begun to bend, Kakashi quickly slackened his grip, soothing out the wrinkled edges.

“You think so?” Iruka asked, looking all too hopeful and all too sixteen at the same time.

 _He’s a sixteen year old,_ Kakashi admonished himself. _Practically a puppy._ Except that Kakashi had overheard him jerking off in the showers earlier that week. Kakashi wasn’t allowed in the dorms, but Iruka was a rule breaker at heart and it wasn’t like anybody would catch Kakashi sneaking up if he took care to remain in the shadows.

“Sure,” Kakashi said. He didn’t tell Iruka that his aspirations were without hope, that there was no way Shizune would return his affections. Not because Iruka was an undesirable specimen, nor was it because Shizune was, in fact and unknown to Iruka, already attached to a man from the delegation. As much as it incised Kakashi to watch Iruka’s mooning over the young doctor’s apprentice, her unavailability made her an ideal candidate for Iruka’s first attempts at building romantic connections.

If Shizune proved foolish enough to return Iruka’s misguided affections… Well, no use agonizing over the unlikely. Kakashi would just have to take the days as they came and hope he wouldn’t have to try and explain just why Shizune’s cold, dead body had been found lying in the dumpsters adjacent to the boys’ dormitory.

Kakashi sighed. It was going to be a long few years as he contemplated how early would be too early. Why couldn’t he fall in love with Minato who had already been an adult when they first met?  

“Do you think I should give her chocolate along with the card?”

 “Sure,” Kakashi said.

_Just a couple of years._

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Came back with something short... I'm alive, I promise, but not writing much at the moment. Hoping to get back to my stories eventually. 
> 
> Nice to see everybody! I'm still reading even if I don't write so I'm still with y'all.


End file.
